Blame it on the hormones. Marilyn Monroe couldn't help but burn through three husbands in her short life, a new study suggests.
Women who boast the blond star's hourglass shape tend to have higher levels of estradiol, the ovarian steroid hormone linked to a woman's fertility, attractiveness and sexual behaviour, researchers at the University of Texas report.
This may make them more likely to stray from their lover's bed or trade up for a better catch should the chance arise.
The researchers sampled the saliva of 52 female undergraduates, aged 17 to 30, to test for the hormone when they were in the middle of their menstrual cycle and again five days before their periods.
During both sessions, participants filled out surveys about their attractiveness, self and sexual motivations and their satisfaction with their current partner.
Women with higher levels of estradiol were found to be the most fertile, says lead study author and psychology PhD candidate Kristina Durante.
"Not only were they our most [self-rated] attractive women, they were also less satisfied with their current partner and more likely to be acquainted with a man other than their partner," she said of the study published this month in the journal Biology Letters.
The findings prove the hormone plays a big role in a woman's sexual choices, Ms. Durante says.
"This may be our body's way of helping us make the most optimal choice of partner without our knowing it."
And what choice Marilyn must have had.
